Disclaimer: Any original characters are property of myself and myself only. Eyeshield 21 is a series created by Riichigo Inagaki and Yusuke Murata. All characters of Eyeshield 21 are property of the original creators, Shonen Jump and Viz Media. Any references to the NFL and its players are copyrighted by the NFL and credited to their respective teams.

Their walk through Point Crest was awkward and silent. Dante kept his hands crammed into his pockets as he walked adjacent to his massive compatriot. His face was a scowl of sour irritation. Having just won a football game quite handily not but a few hours before, it was not an expression one would have guessed would be gracing the linebacker's sharply angled face. Something else was clawing at his mind.

Throughout their stroll Suitokku would steal glances towards his American friend and wonder just what it was between him and his father that would rile him up out of nowhere like this. He hadn't personally even met the old guy yet, but the impression painted of him by Dante left a lot to the imagination. Dante himself gave off a devilish beast like appearance. One could only imagine what could have sired such a creature.

The maritime colossus wanted to press his friend for more information. But doing so seemed about as wise as poking a grumpy bear with a sharpened stick. If one wasn't careful, they would be likely to lose an arm. Even if those arms happened to be as thick as dock pylons.

Despite his wishes however, Suitokku did not poke the bear. Dante seemed quite private about his familial qualms and seemed rather privy to keeping it that way. He had to respect that. After all, there were aspects of his own family life he'd prefer to keep to himself as well. The maritime giant would just have to be patient and wait for the American to open up in his own time.

As the pair marched through Point Crest the ever present hustle and bustle of the college community was buzzing. Students and workers alike made their way through the busy avenues to get to various meetings, dinner plans, or simply on their way home from work or class. The crowds that normally paid little attention to those around them however, could not help but stare at the immense size of Suitokku and at the intimidating aura and figure cut by Dante as they strode through the winding streets. By this point the pair were quite used to being gawked at and paid it little mind.

The smells of food began to permeate the immediate area as the duo came to the open market area of Point Crest. The long street of various food vendors and restaurants seemed to work in a dual shift. In the early morning, grocer stands and vendors sold fresh produce and meats to locals and many of the small restaurant stands would serve a small menu of breakfast items. Later in the evening however, most of the food stalls would shut down, while the restaurant stands shifted over to their lunch or dinner fare. At the far end of this street that the students of Enma affectionately referred to as "Fureba Road" sat some of the bigger establishments in Point Crest like Lone Star's and some of the other larger eateries in the area. But the whole drag leading up to it was chock full of other little pockets of flavor and delicious foods.

On the way through Fareba Road Suitokku closed his eyes every now and then and inhaled deeply. The cacophony of scents was dizzying at times. There were sweet rolls being baked for the next morning. Tempura stands and their rich smells bled into the street beyond their covered awnings. The pungent aromas of ramen bars wafted past the eaves of their advertising signs. Even the sounds of oil bubbling away and the clinking of knives against cutting boards found their way to his listening ears above the din of the busy streets now and again. The maritime giant loved Fureba Road, and not just because he enjoyed eating. It reminded him of the fish markets back home when he and his brothers would arrive to sell their catch, and then spend the morning hunting and pecking their way through the market stalls, eating this and that as they went.

That vivid memory became all the more acute when the scent of grilled unagi finally found his nostrils. With a deep and satisfied sigh the large man zeroed in on the small food stand. He saw an elderly man behind the counter, wrinkled with age; diligently fanning the coals of low burning wood beneath the grill which carefully balanced several skewered fillets of eel. The unagi was dripping with succulent oil from the fat rendering on the fish's flesh. Each drop that fell to the coals sizzled with a little flare of flame before sending its smoking aroma skyward and in the direction of the approaching duo.

Suitokku clasped his hands together and rubbed them eagerly. "Now that's what I'm talking about," he stated hungrily before nudging his friend with a burly elbow. "C'mon!" beckoned the colossal teen and he stepped up towards the counter.

The old man took note of the shadow that suddenly covered his stand and looked up to see quite possibly the largest human being he had ever seen. His squinty eyes popped open with the initial surprise, but he managed a smile under all those folds of wrinkled skin. "Greetings my large friend. What can I get for you?" his voice quaked and wavered with his advanced years, but one could tell it came from a kind heart.

Suitokku bowed slightly, awkward though it was considering his bulk took up most of the available space in front of the counter and glanced at the menu. He chuckled in spite of himself when he saw the menu offered only grilled unagi with a side of rice. Simple yes, but that generally meant the food was top tier. To survive in these packed streets full of other vendors by offering only one menu item? It was a sign of great skill and high quality. The colossal lineman responded, saying "We will take ten orders of the grilled unagi."

The old man's eyes widened a bit in surprise at the large order, but then again the man standing before him could surely eat enough for ten men. It was when Suitokku stepped aside and he noticed the foreigner that he understood a bit better the larger order. With a nod of confirmation the old man went about scooping rice into paper boxes and setting them out on the counter space on his side of the stall. He then expertly retrieved skewers of unagi that were already done and moved them to balance atop a metal container. With experienced hands he snatched up a brush in a nearby cup and dipped it into the container the eel was balancing on and when he brought it back up it was covered in thick syrupy barbeque sauce. He slathered it over the impaled unagi and then rested it atop the bed of rice he had prepared moments earlier. He swiftly removed the skewers and drizzled a bit of extra eel sauce one top of the dish before closing up the lid of the paper box. The old man then repeated the process rapidly over and over until all ten orders were completed. He stacked the boxes up on top of one another forming two even stacks on the rear counter and then tied them together with some twine before bagging them up and setting them out for Suitokku to take. "Your order is ready, thank you very much!" he stated with a deep bow.

Dante squeezed past Suitokku after the colossus picked up the package of pelagic poppables and dug his wallet out of his back pocket. He pulled out the necessary cash to pay the old man and set in in the money tray on the counter. With a respectful bow the American then turned to follow the massive Okinowan out of the stand's space and back into Fureba Road.

The titanic lineman asked his shorter compatriot, "Wanna find a place to eat it here or head back home and eat it there?" It was rather comical seeing the big guy cradle the bag of take out boxes in one arm as easily as someone carrying a bottle of water.

At the question, Dante peered around the nearby area and seemed to think about it for a moment before digging out his phone to read the time. His eyes seemed to lock onto his phone for a few silent moments and he said, "Let's find a place out here." he paused again still staring at that phone before finishing "It's nice out."

Suitokku could not help but feel that reaction was weird. Something was clearly off with the American tonight. He narrowed his steely blue gaze on the linebacker and replied, "Alright." and then watched as Dante started to walk away in search of a bench or something similar. Following after him, his eyes bored into the back of the redhead's skull. What was it that was putting him in this mood? Certainly it was more than his jokes about Akiko earlier, and the foreigner had even brought up some details involving how he was tired of certain things, and about his father. With a low sigh Suitokku resigned to the likelihood that he was going to be left in the dark for a while on the topic.

Not long after they left the stand Dante found a suitable bench under a pair of trees to park his posterior on. With a sudden thump the American plopped down onto the bench and he patted the empty spot beside him in invitation. Suitokko turned and planted his own backside onto the bench, which did creak slightly under his immense mass, but held all the same.

The massive youth reached into the take out bag and procured two of the take away boxes. He handed one of them over to Dante and provided him with one of the sets of chopsticks as well. Popping open the box, the big man broke apart his own chopsticks and began to dig into the smoky grilled unagi. Piercing the tender meat of the eel, he split it into a hefty bite sized portion along with a scoop of sticky rice. Biting into it he could immediately tell the quality. The eel melted like sweet butter on the tongue, and was rich and smokey. The rice was what it was, but it paired well with the powerful flavor of the unagi.

As well versed as Dante appeared to be culturally given how well he spoke Japanese, it did seem like this was a new thing for him. He split his chopsticks and opened his own box and inspected the food inside. The eel had a sticky sweet smelling glaze on it which dribbled down onto the rice, soaking into the absorbent starch. The hairy foreigner stole a peek at his friend as the maritime monster dug into it. A look of pure serenity found the massive lineman's broad face after the first bite. Dante snorted and stabbed his chopsticks into the fillet of eel, breaking off a chunk and taking a bite. As he chewed the morself he began to nod. The eel taste itself seemed mild to him, but the sauce on it seemed to only propel that smokey sweetness to the next level. He had to admit, it was tasty.

"Ok Orca, I see you. This shit's pretty good." admitted the stubborn American as he began to tear through the rest of his first portion.

Suitokku was still savoring the first bite and smiled after swallowing it before answering, "It is one of my favorites. My brothers and I would always order some from old man Jiko in the dock market when we sold off our catch. This tastes pretty close. But Jiko would add chili flakes to his sauce and give it a bit of a kick." He paused and pointed to the dish with his chopsticks before adding, "But this is more traditional." The big fellow took another bite and enjoyed it before sighing, "Reminds me of home."

Dante was quickly mowing through his own portion as he listened to the large seaside teen speak. When the colossal youth finished speaking Dante stopped eating and poked at his food with the chopsticks before muttering, "Home huh?" His demeanor seemed to shift from hungry to somber quickly.

Suitokku turned his head to look more directly at his friend. He seemed forlorn. The stalwart giant asked, "Homesick?"

The cantankerous American snorted at that and gave a self depreciating smirk before answering, "Hard to be homesick when you rarely stay in one spot." He then aggressively scarfed down the remainder of his first helping before reaching into the bag for the next one. "Old man moved around so much while we were growing up I barely managed to string together any semblance of a home."

As his friend tore into the second package of savory unagi Suitokku frowned. "I see. I admit I don't really remember Ireland very much. We moved back to Okinawa when I was young. Six or seven I guess. I do remember the move though, it was tough." He paused and turned his attention back to his own meal and carved another piece free before adding, "It had to have been rough to do it a bunch of times." Suitokku took another large bite and watched Dante intently to see what he might do.

Dante took the lid off his second portion and stabbed the chopsticks into the unagi to tear free another chunk. He choked it down and then stared at the remainder for a moment before answering, "Amongst other shit yeah. It wasn't great." He smirked slightly and slowly tore another portion of the eel and before eating it said, "But it ain't all bad. I got to meet some cool people, try some great foods… and now." He paused holding the unagi morsel aloft with his chopsticks. He seemed lost for words for a moment before managing to say, "Well now. It's no longer up to him. I can do my own thing if I wanted."

This sudden epiphany from his friend seemed to lift his spirits at least. Well sort of lift his spirits. He certainly wasn't his brash and boisterous self. But he seemed to be opening up a little bit. "Sorry you don't get along with your Da." replied the towering titan in a somber tone. Sure he had his spats with his own father. Which father and son didn't? But Dante made it abundantly clear he and his own dad, were on less than stellar terms.

Dante let out a long sigh and slouched against the back of his bench. He stretched his neck out and looked skyward before holding his breath for a few moments. Another deep sigh emanated from the foreigner before he lowered his chin and said, "Yeah well… skipping out on your own daughter's funeral for a business summit will do that to a father son relationship."

Suitokku had the bad luck of taking another bite when Dante said that, and his rapid inhalation of shock and surprise lodged the tidbit deep into his trachea. He began to cough harshly and pounded his broad chest with an iron ball of a fist to clear his throat. Tears surged from his eyes as he wheezed and spat bits of rice and unagi out of his mouth. Breathing harshly, he groaned. "Wait kaff-kaff ! What? Kaff-kaff!" The maritime leviathan continued to pat his chest after having cleared his throat and let out a few more sharp coughs just to be sure.

Suddenly not so hungry any more, Dante set aside his take out dish and leaned back into the bench once more. Crossing his arms he tilted his head to the side and sighed, "I did not stutter. My father, the high mighty hotel tycoon, missed his own daughter's funeral, my dear sister, for his business." An ever increasing frown creased the American's face, and his burly azalea bush like eyebrows furrowed further and further as he spoke.

The Okinowan orca was at a loss for words. He just stared at his friend in stark disbelief. How does someone make that choice? To miss the funeral of your own child for the sake of a business. Several breathless moments passed before the beleaguered lineman was able to utter, "Wow. That's just. Wow." He shook his head slightly and ran a massive paw through his hair. "I can see why you two don't get along now." Dante's silence about the topic up until now seemed a bit more understandable. He looked towards his friend again and saw the pained expression he wore. Before he realized it he asked, "What was your sister like?" Maybe it was inappropriate to ask, but whenever he had been around situations of loss, his mother always was quick to ask those affected about their lost loved ones. It always seemed to lighten the mood and uplift spirits to think of them in a positive light.

And indeed, Dante did turn quick to look, a bit surprised by the sudden inquiry. "My sis?" he asked as he naturally unfurled his arms. Resting his hands on his thighs he seemed lighter for a moment and smiled softly saying, "She was the best. A little spitfire that wasn't afraid to step on my toes and tell me to stop being so stupid." he chuckled slightly. "She had a big heart. I could always count on her when I was feeling depressed or had a bad day to say something to bring me out of it." He sighed and moved his hand up his thigh to his pocket to pull out his wallet. He opened the bill fold and produced a single wrinkled picture of a girl. She was petite with dark black hair and wide bright blue eyes. Her smile was wide and bright. In the picture she was wearing a lavender colored sweat shirt and was standing in front of a large tree of some type.

Suitokku had to do a double take and peered closer. He narrowed his eyes in confusion and said, "She looks just like…"

Dante finished his sentence for him, "Suzuna… I know right? It's uncanny." He snorted in disbelief before turning the picture over in his hands to stare at it intently. "Knocked me for a loop when I first met her too." He smiled whimsically and carefully placed the picture back into his wallet. That smile slowly faded however and the linebacker's shoulders slumped once more. He sat forwards and rubbed his hands atop his thighs.

With a sad sigh he then explained, "She was hit by a drunk driver after walking home from a neighbor's house about 6 years ago." His strong hands began to dig into his thighs as he squeezed his legs and continued, "She didn't come home and it was getting late. I went out to look for her… and…" The fierce and strong American, who had been nothing but a monument to manly toughness up until this point, began to tremble and his voice cracked. "I-I found her on the side of the r-road. She was…" He tried to eat his emotions and took a deep breath while clenching his jaw before forcing himself to continue, "Unresponsive so I called an ambulance… I rode with them and…" He was squeezing his thighs so tightly at this point that his knuckles were turning white hot. His voice fell as did his shoulders and he looked away from Suitokku as he finished, "She died on the way to the hospital."

A palpable silence fell between them for a few breathless moments. Suitokku could tell how meaningful a relationship Dante must have had with his sister. To see him crumble like this pained the giant. He didn't have words for his friend. He wished that he did. But what could he say? She's in a better place or some other cliche response like that? Somehow, he didn't think Dante would appreciate or even register such responses. Instead the colossal titan reached out with his massive hand and rested it on Dante's shoulder, giving it a firm squeeze.

Dante did not resist the gesture, his trembling form was doing all it could to stay together at that point, and the extra support seemed to help. After several moments he took a deep breath and looked back towards his monstrous friend. He reached up and wiped the wetness from his eyes and gave a shaky breath before saying, "Anyway… after she died Winstead and I set up arrangements for the funeral. And my father was across the country at a business summit or some other horse shit for his hotel chain. I was in a bad place and tried calling him to reach out, hoping for some real guidance, for the man to be a fucking father for once in his God damned life!" Dante began trembling once more, only this time with pure rage and fury rather than sadness. The irate teen continued berating his father's name, "And that heartless shit pile says that he couldn't make it back. That the business he was working on was too important to drop! TOO IMPORTANT!" His voice rose to levels that carried through Fureba Road and caught the attention of many passersby. Suitokku gave his shoulder a tighter squeeze and a look that implied it was alright.

Dante clenched tighter onto his thigh and seethed at a lower volume, "Too important to come home and grieve the loss of your only daughter?! Too important to come home and be with your only remaining grieving son!?" He twisted his head in a disgruntled snort and tersely continued. "As far as I was concerned, the day he did that was the day he lost not only his daughter but his son too! That inhuman piece of shit can take his empire and shove it for all I care!" His voice rose in crescendo once more as his piercing screech tore into the open street. A few folks nearby shouted in alarm and jumped aside.

Suitokku understood why Dante was so upset. Who wouldn't be in that scenario? But he also realized if he let the American continue to erupt in public like this, he could wind up in trouble. The maritime giant gave his friend's shoulder another firm squeeze and said, "Gingerbread… hey! Hey look at me!" and gave his friend a rough shake.

The red headed rag doll swayed with the force of the movement and turned on Suitokku in a rage fueled daze. The giant's eyes were placid and led his own to the streets beyond them as if emphasizing where they were. Dante followed that gaze and must have realized he was starting to make a scene. With a shake of the head he ran a hand through his wild red mane and apologized, "Sorry… it's just…" A sudden migraine seemed to start pounding in his head. The emotional linebacker pressed a palm against his forehead and said, "Lets go…" before standing abruptly and shrugging off Suitokku's grip. Staggering into the street he began to walk away from the leviathan.

Suitokku was quick to follow after his friend. Hopping to his feet, he snatched up the bag of remaining unagi portions and tramped after the American. Quickly catching up to the distraught linebacker he called out, "Hey hold up!" Once side by side with the linebacker Suitokku said, "Look I know I can't really fathom what it must feel like to be in your situation. You and I come from different worlds. But what I can promise is this. If you need someone to talk about it with, someone to vent to, to scream at, to break down, whatever. You can count on me. I owe you that." There finally seemed something palpable the Okinowan could do to start repaying all the favors Dante had bestowed on him.

Dante continued to forcibly march forward and gave a side eye to Suitokku as he spoke. The blusterous American closed his weary eyes for a moment and nodded in silence before uttering, "Sure…" and leaving it at that.

The massive lineman nodded, seeming satisfied with that blunt response. Besides, it seemed like he wasn't going to get much more out of the distraught redhead any time soon anyway. Their conversation had stirred up waves of controversy and raw tender emotions after all. It was going to take some time to return to any normalcy.

The pair marched the rest of the way to their lofty tower in cold silence. Suitokku now knew the source of some of Dante's mood swings, and Dante had someone to confide in about his pained past. But what waited at the penthouse was the last thing either of them expected or wanted to see. When the two of them walked through the doorway and into the open kitchen. Dante's father was standing at the counter, waiting.